At times along the path of life we encounter dark days. Days that are so dark that it seems the sun will shine no more. We grapple in the dark trying to find something to hold on to with no success. We turn to those around us that we consider close to us but they offer no solace either. Such is a good time to turn it all to God. Because where man falls short God takes up and completes.
It might be a mother with a sick child who has constantly pleaded for the child's healing on her knees. She has done all she could do for the child but nothing seems to change. She has cried out to God more times than she knows but yet the condition remains the same.
It could be a man who haplessly watches his marriage fall apart as a result of unresolved issues with his wife. He wonders about the fate of his children if a divorce should happen. Knowing too well the impact that would have on the little ones is what breaks his heart over and over again.
Or it is that one who has just found out about a serious health condition. The blow seems irreparable since the news are so fresh. He wonders how to tell his family and about the effects of the sickness on them.
God specialises in turning around such seemingly hopeless situations. It is when we have come to the end of ourselves that God steps in and takes control of the situation. In all his mighty power God comes in and deals with the situation in such a way that leaves no doubt of his presence in our lives. God delights in taking up the difficult situations in our lives for the Glory of his name. It is his way of proving that in this day and age he is still God.
He calls out to you to take your burdens to him. He understands your pain and will make it bearable if only you take it to him in prayer. He is reaching out to you to offload your worries, that thing that is beyond you to him. He is able to deal with it and bring victory in ways you do not know or imagine. And yet all it takes is your faith and that one important step of faith to get him working out things for you.
Trust God with your burden. It is his speciality.Then sit back and watch him at work in your life.
God has been sending doses of favor my way lately. He has been surprising me when I needed it most. Which has been often lately. God has surprised me by revealing to me that it is the small things that matter most. Perhaps his way of telling me to let go of the big stuff and enjoy the seemingly usual stuff in my life.Like the new neighbor's little boy next door.
He is just about 2 years of age. He is a chubby little fella who takes pleasure in running up to me every day when I get home and giving me a bearhug. Most often I have to lift him up and with my kids all grown I had forgotten how it feels to cuddle a little one who fits in perfectly in my arms( and likes it). And so it is a custom I now look forward to every evening that the little boy will stop playing with the others once I get home and come running to hug me. I am getting used to having a little person trailing me in the house thus. Trying to decipher his needs because he does not speak audibly is also becoming part of the deal. And so most evenings and weekends when I am home I can be found tying up little shoe laces once my little friend decides to leave to his house next door or talking (seemingly to myself) to him with no response expected.
This little boy has brought joy in my life. It is amazing that he often visits my house and leaves me more happy and refreshed from his little presence. I find myself enjoying doing stuff for him because he is so accomodating and deserving of my attention. And in so doing i get so much joy. I call him God's little dose because when he is around he lifts my spirit in an exceptional way.
Then there is my cabbie. There is nothing as refreshing as having a reliable cabbie. This one is always available any time of day or night. One who goes an extra mile at his job. I have known him over an year now and cabbie is a blessing to me and my family. Doesnt talk much but he will take us where we want to go. He is the kind that I can entrust to drive my children somewhere without me.
I have learned a lot lately about things that I often take for granted and what they mean to me. Good health and shelter. Most times i am trusting God for some big things, stuff that could turn my life around but latelly he is sending his love in little doses. He is showing me love in places that I have not been looking. In ways that I often take for granted. I am enjoying his new style. In the meantime I am busy appreciating the love he sends my way.
She gets out a flashy phone and starts texting and chatting with her friends. Every so often she laughs out loudly at some joke only known to her. Her face is a variety of emotions passed on by the people she chats with. One moment she looks almost ready to cry and I can only imagine she is chatting to someone who is not so happy. Then she bursts out laughing and I get confused.
My ride from town is made interesting sitting next to this young lady in the matatu. She seems to be in a world of her own, only looking up from her phone briefly when paying fare. Otherwise the whole journey home is punctuated with giggles and all manner of expressions as she exchanges all manner of info on her phone. Her speed on the Qwerty phone is somewhat enviable. She sends out endless chats as she switches from one account to another. She seems so engrossed in her world I dare not interfere.
I think about her long after the matatu ride. It concerns me because hers is not an isolated case. I see it all around me, young people who take up any available opportunity to communicate on their phones. As much as I have nothing against the use of the mobile phone it is the seeming addiction to it that bothers me. It seems young people are talking more to their phones than to other people.
When all is said and done we still need to talk to one another on a personal level. But that is changing fast with the elevated use of technology. Nothing wrong with using it to improve our lives but what concerns me is the fact that the warmth of one on one communication is fast getting extinct. It is possible to express my feelings over a chat or sms but miss out on the physical touch that is present in a face to face chat. I cannot dismiss those valuable clues and hints i get when chatting with people, the warmth of having someone's feelings flash across their face as we talk.
At times it makes sense to put all those devices down and stare out of the window of a moving vehicle instead of being immersed with the phone. When home it also makes sense that you bond as a family during those lively chats after dinner. Nothing can replace the warm laughter of family members who have come to an end of the day and gather together to share their experiences. It is the very essence of bonding.
But young people never ever fall shot of amazing habits. I have witnessed young men who sit in a shared public seat like they are the only ones aboard. This leaves the other person dangling onto the little space left for them as the man taps away on his phone. I often wonder if such a person who is so engrossed in himself can have a healthy sharing relationship. Some habits are very telling, you know.
That said, there needs to be a balance in life so that we do not loose touch of the important things in life while chasing after what's new and seems appealing to us. Those phones and gadgets should not take the place of healthy communication. When not regulated these gizmos serve to break down the very fabric of relationships which is healthy talking with whole hearted attention given one to another. Otherwise we risk loosing out on the very things that make us human beings with all emotions to show for it.
Yesterday I happened out just after 9pm and what I saw broke my heart. While stepping out of a chemist where I had gone to pick some lozenges, I was shocked to hear a loud shouts coming from right across the street. I stood there for a while and what I saw unfold before my eyes broke my heart to the core.
A group of five young girls who looked like they had just cleared high school stood right in the middle of the road. With them were three young men who seemed composed despite the rowdy noise from the girls. I could tell the girls were very drunk and two of them were smoking. They kept harassing the boys to go along with them even though they were reluctant. What I was watching was a clear show of girls in control.
I stood there a while longer watching the group. Vehicles had to make their way around them as they were right in the middle of the road. It was a good thing this was an estate shopping centre otherwise they risked getting run over walking right in the middle of the road. I wondered if their parents knew what they were up to, and even wondered more how they would go home to their families intoxicated as they were. Every once in a while they would hurl insults to passersby and follow it up with loud laughter.
This is not an Isolated happening as over the weekend I saw so many people both young and old passing the hours around tables laden with alcohol. It is now not necessary to drink alcohol in the confines of low light pub as there are now outdoor pubs in the form of tables. Here you find groups of men drinking in the company of ladies who occupy whatever sitting space is available, mostly on the laps of the men. They sit there discussing politics or football as they while away most of the weekend drinking.
In both these scenarios, alcohol is in use in large quantities. It seems nowadays if you are not drinking you are not with it. Alcohol has become the social medium in our society so that if one does not want to be left behind then they need to frequent these alcohol clubs often. It is pathetic watching so many people wasting away their lives in what appears to be a frenzy to outwit each other in intoxication. But what exactly is turning our society into a drinking society?
It is a society gone bad when socialising is done in pubs. I always wonder even more when I see women competing with the men at downing drinks with abandon. Women are not meant to drink. Alcohol makes one loose their focus and we need mothers who are alert to deal with the matters of bringing up a family. So while these women are drinking late into the night who is left with the children, who is mothering them? No wonder we are seeing more and more kids brought up by house helps who may not have the necessary parenting skills. Someone needs to tell ladies that there is nothing cool about sloshing down countless bottles of beer and getting back home late to sleeping children.
Yes life is tough and not getting easier. But when a man or woman chooses to drown their cares with alcohol it does not help anything. No one gets a medal for being an alcoholic and abdicating their roles which is what alcohol does to most. We are seeing more and more men turning into alcoholics day by day and who seem to only work to go out and drink some more. If everyone has turned into an alcoholic, then what is the future of our society? Is there no other means of letting it out except through drinking?
No wonder we are seeing an increase of broken homes. And with that comes broken children who also turn to alcohol to try and cope with life issues. There is also an increase of criminal cases performed under the influence of alcohol. Not to mention unwanted pregnancies that result from the one night stands induced by alcohol consumption. Alcohol brings with it a chain reaction and if left unchecked we could be turning into a drink dependant society. Then woe unto our children!
Alcohol will not solve any problem and that is clear. The effects of alcohol need to be brought out more and more even on national television so that people are reminded what it is they are getting themselves into. Religious leaders too need to call for sobriety and bring forth campaigns on the vice. Sweeping the menace under the rug will not help our society rather we all need to point alternative recreational means of letting off stress. Surely there are more beneficial forums of socialising that do not dent the pocket and cause breakdown of relationships. If we all seek to find them.
